Get into the groove

Here’s a fact: Most audiophiles are now in agreement that vinyl is the superior format. And unless modern-day music players can approximate its excellent sound reproduction, this analog medium is likely to stay with us for good.

Some experts say that the vinyl magic lies in its grooves, which they say is an exact replica of the actual sound waves stored in this plastic contraption. But most of us are unaware that we have only barely scratched the surface here, and that vinyl has much more to offer in terms of sound quality. The main hindrance to this is resonance. 

High school physics taught me that resonance is the propensity of a system to fluctuate or vibrate with greater breadth at some frequencies compared with others. Frequencies, which respond at maximum levels are known as resonant frequencies, or resonance frequencies. At these frequencies, even a soft tap of a tuning fork produces large amplitude oscillations because it stores vibrational energy.

Resonance is neither good nor bad. How to correctly harness it is what counts. Musical instruments produce sound precisely because of it. Resonance in music produces the agreeable sounds of chords and octave differences. The sound waves add constructively. 

But resonance in suspension bridge designs can be catastrophic. Constant wind produces vibrations in the roadbed and suspension cable, which can be destructive when superimposed. Resonance in audio signals, on the other hand, affords engineers to tune specific frequencies to get optimal sound reproduction.

This is the reason for putting dampers inside a speaker enclosure, and isolating the platform of a turntable. Audio engineers also strive to design compact disc players with minimal or no jitters at all.

Of course we invest in good-sounding audio gadgets. We want the high end of a tweeter or the low end of a subwoofer to be more pronounced, but obviously not for some screws to rattle loose or the speakers to cause vibrations on other objects inside the music room.

In a nutshell, there is such a thing as an unwanted resonance. One that really obscures our listening pleasure from analog gadget is resonance in plastic. Yes, vinyl itself produces resonance which translates to nasal vocals and uncontrollable sibilance.

Just imagine a dripping faucet. Its droplets inside a  basin full of water produces continues ripples. This is akin to plastic resonance with the ripples representing unwanted frequencies, which degrade sound quality. The solution is to fix the faucet to stop the drip. In vinyl a gadget has to be placed on top of the vinyl center to damp or completely halt the reproduction of these wayward frequencies.

Environmentalist and audio hobbyist Mandy Mariño dropped by the house recently to try out a contraption which he calls active record weight. He claimed his creation, for which he has a pending patent, can address the problem of resonance in plastic.

He said that through experimentation and micro-testing, he was able to isolate these particular frequencies which vitiate the sound quality of analog music.

I was dumbfounded by the result. I have never heard vinyl sound so flawless. The next day, I invited my good friend and neighbor, audio engineer John Alegre, to evaluate Mandy’s record weight. His verdict: The gadget brought out inner details, which he has never heard before. The soundstage became larger, and the sound frequencies more defined.

The circular gadget, which has a small donut hole at the center, is meant to be placed on the record spindle. Its three mini spikes separate it from the record label by a tiny fraction of a millimeter. These three spikes are latched on to the main body by independent suspensions made up of tiny springs. Each suspension is meant to dampen certain frequencies.

 â€œHigh on the list of my audio pet-peeves is the ubiquitous nasality of piano tones,” Mandy says.  “A few recordings” and analog decks reduce but do not eliminate the distortion.

He points out that chasing after the problem has proved futile. He was forced to grudgingly accept that this is an inherent fault of analog reproduction…until a year ago when he started to consider at length that the vinyl record itself resonates.

“Its vibrations interact with the recorded signal,” Mandy explains. “Fortunately the technology to damp out resonances exists. Tuned-mass dampers are widely used in race cars, bridges and especially in skyscrapers to stop destructive resonance during earthquakes. The record weight containing tuned-mass dampers operate exactly on the same principles. Thus, removing spurious vibrations has resulted in a more faithful reproduction of the recorded signal. The prototype models give a glimpse of the promise of what a well-tuned damper holds.”

John and I immediately recognized the many improvements to the reproduced sound. Apparently the insidious effects of vinyl resonance are wide-ranging, with the distortion of piano notes being only one of the more obvious manifestations. Mandy says future work will be devoted to optimizing the effectiveness of the active record weight.

Mandy is spot-on. His creation makes it easier for the cartridge to get into the grooves and bring out more magic from vinyl. I swear that it was my first time ever to hear vinyl records played with so many details that the enhanced sound transported me to musical dreamland.

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For comments or questions, please e-mail me at audioglow@yahoo.com or at vphl@hotmail.com. You can also visit www.wiredstate.com for quick answers to your audio concerns.